The Opelousas courier., 1887-12-03
An LIFE.
Stories That illustrate It's Dance, 5.
Variety and Its Fascination.
Chicago Herald.

scAAIkJ iAd AIS II ~ISClDAEnsIs lE
Chicago Herald.
Few people realize the adventurous n.,,..
OF an 1glneer,s life. There is not an ma
them, who has been on the road any lengsS
time but has some tale of adventure h 49, y
some, experience which would be ionSSs.s
ylvidly remembered by the followers ~ sss
dangerous callings. So common, hoWaysss
are these occurrences in the life OF the lnsSs
motive engineer that he seldom refefs 4
be of interest to others. Sometime M m
boys regard these little i0cidents "
amusing when nobody happens 10 Is
hurt. An engineer last evening wns entsss
tanning a group at the Palmer Iiouse WITH u
account Of n Of H. E, Wills first TIM
Council Bluffs. There were c~ornfieids q :
either side Of the track. Suddenly the M
motive left its ordinary road and went oF n
a tangent. Through the fence it VENT
though 1t were a cobweb, and tore for solsS
Instance into the confeld, throwing d cloud
OF dirt for rods in every direction. Or courss
it had to go to the repair-shop. bnt Was n
very seriously injured. They got il hack c
the track by taking up the rails and Isl
ing them out to the crazy enigma
had run It back, This troa sias
was all caused by two rails getting looss b
the joint. Another story they tell of MEa
Wills Is even more remarkable. He was NJ
n one day on The right SIDE of his cab, Iii
hand on the throttle and his elbow ressink
on his knee, when suddenly, without IN MI
stant's warning, he was hurled through M
window, and struck head first in the sn0Ws
His train went about a third Of q mils sid
stopped. Mr.. Wills rose and followed aftaS
He I9et. the conductor coming toward him
who asked If he had jumped. he replied
Il don know; L got o. all right, any ay.A
1t seems that the side rod. the rod coaneek
ing the two large drivers, had broken in ibbf
middle, ard one end of it, whirling uddehs
over and sticking IN the ground, had throah
the cab up on M side with a quick and yi9H
lent jolt. Mr.. Wills, as he went ont of ga
that he had done it, had shut off the throti3
and applied the brake. The fireman Esa
thrown violently across the cab, and oneslA
of the cab was demolished by the flying
pieces Of the broken side rod.
One OF The most common experiences Of IN
engineer is running into animals. l0l
course, =" said knight of the throttle I'D
evening to q little group of ladies sitting 81
a sofa in the Palmer House parlors, we IN
so used to riding on an engine 1t doesn't seed
strange to us. But | tell yon, you lestAk
brayest man get on one IN a foggy Or stoEuf
right, and go plunging through the darn
ness, not knowing what minute he might ful
into something, it would make MS heart Bed
faster, to say the least. Now, II one Of ~
I IitaIe Women P fg = S1a :, i% d;ts . ps aaa
WI NAtlJQlI III q B1dCh bllks 1V6 ICftgH WATT
my husband hundreds of miles, and run ia
.,so've l." said another. sso'vs
chimed in, q chorus. IT was goisa
to tel. " said h speaker, as soon % shia
little tempest had srbsidedd, how ! was yaa'
near West Liberty, La. Right near me wsrl
two horses on the track. Horses are tbs
meanest things in the world to en- ]ounier,
They always run right ahead Of you, end
don't Jump off n side. Right ahead Of m8
strike them right on the bridge, at a slo1
rate OF speed, and be ditched. Ihoped 4
catch them before they reached il, SO didHI
slack UP at all. I caught them right on TN
bridge. and lifted them right out OF II
dropping one on each side. At another tlSas
! was taking the pay-car and 9 special VIII
small engine. On a bridge right ahead stsed
q Woman. did everything q man could II
to stop, then elinched my teeth and waited
The engine struck her and she shot straight
up into the air about twelve feet. and thsR
she deadsa some one asked. SDead as iii
will be ten years hence-4 was the grim reply
Or all the experiences which the engines
relate, s~now-plowing seems to be the one mob
dreaded. They are gone sometimes a week
plunging through the snow, st times enttrsIl
rounding cold cools Off the steam the engin4
comes to q stop wherever it happens to be-
"dies.n On some roads it is customary h
pay by the mile, whether the track ID clear a
covered with snowdrifts. One engineer teel
Of being out in the snow for twentysfegf
hours and receiving thirty cents for BIZ
work. A. ID, Springer halls from 0olorade'
He took the first train over Veta Pass, eighty
five miles south OF Pueblo, on the Derive
and Rio Grande. The snow there lies fre:
Quently in winter five feet on the loyef Ed
drifts into banks twenty-five or thirty fees
deep. The train operators are often engage1
f~fty-six hours at a time plowing SNOW, ThsI
food in such cases is brought them on sfieVs
s shoss Ir 81 sdrl have We beer on such bo an e%c ss ! m
without eating.n